AIBU to think they should replace the Christmas tree?

[BloodOrangeCheesecake]

Hi all,

Apologies for any mistakes - English is my second language.

I bought a real Christmas tree at our local farmer’s shop few days ago, kids got all exited about decorating it this evening - only for us to find out that every single tip of every branch is chopped off (I’m assuming to make Christmas wreaths)

AIBU to contact the shop and ask to replace it?

DH says to leave it but it annoys me - I don't want a butchered Christmas tree.
It is quite visible (at least to me) and can’t really be covered with baubles etc

Oh For goodness sake. lay off her eh?

I spent more than a year in DV refuge with my children. So I was technically homeless.

That’s why a real Christmas tree is a special treat for my children and £65 quid is lot of money for me to be unhappy about

I donate to Woman’s Aid and Refuge regularly too.

You're welcome. Don't take the negative comments to heart. Some people just love to have a dig and a prod at an innocent poster just wanting to vent, or just wanting some help and advice. If you had posted this in CHAT, or posted it in the late morning, the responses would have been vastly different. The night time responses on here - AIBU especially - are often not very nice!

@BloodOrangeCheesecake I am so sorry to hear this that you were homeless - and a victim of DV!

@dorriss maybe think twice before you post scathing comments in future eh? And that goes to all the others on here lashing out at the OP.

Yanbu, I would be pissed off about this and think it's a completely legitimate complaint. I wouldn't give a tree a detailed inspection to check for this before choosing it as who on earth would expect this to have been done?!

People are being horrid here. You deserve a nice tree OP and so do your children. I hope you get it changed and that you have a lovely Christmas.

FreshWinterMorning
If you had posted this in CHAT, or posted it in the late morning, the responses would have been vastly different.

Yes, you are probably right, didn’t think of that. It was my first and last 🤣 thread on Mumsnet, I didn’t know what to expect. And yes, I just wanted to vent about my crappy tree

Thanks again, Fresh, you sound lovely. X

Have a lovely Christmas you too, Rabiz!

Oh, the irony of being called grabby and not thinking of homeless for not being happy that farm shop owners being dodgy

It was clear to me that you meant the very tip of the branches and not every spur. It’s really noticeable from the photos. I’d be really annoyed too. I’m not sure why some posters are being awful about it, not surprised though. I’d take it back if you can be bothered.

I didn’t get it at first but with the extra photos I can see exactly what you mean.

I took my tree back last year as it was too big once I got it home. I got it from a local garden centre and they didn’t bat an eyelid refunding me.

i know you said you can’t really be arsed, but if I were you I’d take it back and start again.

It's possible to use tinsel strategically without smothering the entire tree. I was always taught to use it to hide the wires.

These photos look really bad. The cut ends really jump out at you. YADNBU.

Also thank you for posting the wreath making link. I want to go out foraging for a rainbow of greens now to make my own wreath. (No Christmas trees will be butchered in the process.)

I think definitely give some feedback to the farm shop next time you’re there. But you’re right for now forget it, too much hassle to return it. Let the kids enjoy decorating it.

@BloodOrangeCheesecake Do you know what kind of tree it is? I was buying a tree recently & decided to try something different to the usual Nordmann Fir (think maybe a Fraser Fir).

Even netted up I could see that all had had some of the branches trimmed. The person in the shop did not know why but we decided it was possibly to make it look more symmetrical.

I did buy one (that looked the least pruned) but have not unwrapped it yet to see what it looks like.

I'm also foreign OP and I think you're being ridiculous. Lots of trees are like this and you've chosen it.

I had no idea you were a "foreigner" so no idea why you think that. My concern here is the tree.

I would call them when they open, explain and ask for a replacement when you take the tree back. I agree that £65 is a lot of money to pay for something that's been hacked at.

We returned a tree once because after only one week it was starting to turn brown and was dropping needles, despite us keeping water topped up and doing what we always do. It clearly wasn't as fresh as it looked when we bought it. I emailed photos to the company who told me they'd replace it. But no way was I going to suck that up. If I'd received an inferior/faulty product that was anything else I'd have done the same. Why is a Christmas tree different?

I can't believe the posters who think you can only care about one thing at a time - it's either the homeless or your Christmas tree, it can't possibly be both!!! 😏

I agree the tree looks a bit rubbish op, but you did choose it? Your analogies are a bit crap, lost in translation perhaps. Id suck it up this year, and choose better next year.

or hack the whole thing up and make one massive wreath? Since you clearly know about the intricacies of wreath making? 😝

@BloodOrangeCheesecake I've re-examined mine again this morning, it's same price as yours and it does have some tips cut off not near as much as yours. It doesn't affect the look for me the tree is very symmetrical. I think they do it for symmetry, your must have been very wonky to begin with

The tree itself is quite lovely and nice regular shape.

That'll be because they trimmed it.

None of these comparisons make sense. Lego - no? Parts missing is a permanent issue that makes a permanent item unusable. A tree is a temporary decoration of organic origin with natural inconsistencies that tend to need (sometimes extensive) pruning to make more uniform as a result.

And I have no clue where you’ve decided they’ve used pruned parts for wreaths. Do you make wreaths? Did they authoritatively tell you so? Did your tree have a distinctive birth mark which you can now see part of on a wreath they also had for sale at exactly the same time nearby which you noticed despite your self reported rush? 😂

Christmas trees are bought as is if they aren’t netted up. You having hurried is your own problem, it doesn’t make you entitled to another tree/a refund because you don’t like it now you’ve had a closer look 🤦‍♀️

Mine has branches like this too. Not bothered. I think it’s to help give it a neater shape

Just back from tree shopping.
I noticed the exact same thing and couldn’t understand it as it definitely wasn’t done to shape the tree. It wasn’t dark though and I chose one that was intact. My friend chose a butchered one as she wanted it for a tall but small space.
Then I noticed they were also selling small wreaths for £12.
Everybody is out to squeeze an extra profit where they can.
YANBU
Take it back and ask for a replacement if you can be bothered.
They can only say no. They might say yes.

that’s not really a fair comparison though, you can see tips trimmed off branches, you can’t necessarily see if a turkey has gone off. You can do an example with a car for both - if you find a scratch after you’ve bought it, tough, you didn’t check, if the gear box is missing you’ve got a point. The tree works as a Christmas tree, you even say it’s a lovely shape, you just don’t like the aesthetics of it - that is something you could have checked before you bought it. You say you were in a rush, but that isn’t the shops fault. They didn’t try to trick you.

Ours is like this too. Never come across a tree pruned as much as this one before (brought from the same place as usual) I’d assumed it was trimmed for the shape. Can’t decide if I mind it or not but it’s up and decorated now so can’t be doing with the faff of taking it down. Give em a ring and ask to swap it if you think it’ll bother you